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Cool Stuff

Hasbro put the finishing touches on its
successful Power of the Jedi Tour at Wizard World 2001 in Chicago
with a flurry of new figures that will certainly give collectors something to
look forward to in the coming months. This was the third and final leg of a
three-stop tour that began in Shreveport, LA, moved on
to the massive San Diego ComicCon, and concluded
this weekend in the Windy City. As you are about to see, Hasbro continues to
reach new heights in their movie-accurate detailing, with a batch of toys that
will make even the strictest carded collectors buy an extra to open.

The Hasbro team taking their valuable weekend time for us included from left
to right, Paul Palmer, Randy Shoemaker, Jeff Popper, Paula Sacchi and Brian
Parrish. This was Paul's fourth show this season, having made all of them
including GenCon, where they announce any new figures..
Randy is a Star Wars Brand Manager and this was his first show. Jeff and
Paula were both in San Diego as well. Brian is a toy designer who had
worked on the new Amidala Decoy and Eeth Koth as well as Aurra Sing and
Shmi. Brian is also one of the core team that moved from Cincinnati to
Rhode Island this year. Randy is new to Hasbro and was excited about his
role on the team.

Hasbro Q & A

Paul Palmer kicked off the Q & A with a short presentation on this
summer's Power of the Jedi tour. Though Audrey introduced Paul and warned
that no questions could be answered, which of course included Attack Of
The Clones toys, the last slide they showed had just one thing on it
"2002". It must have been left over from another presentation.

In my book, Hasbro has been keeping one of the best guys from the tour in Brian.
Not only has he been on the team since just after the release of the buff figures
in 1995, he is very knowledgeable and well spoken. Specifically, I thought he did an
excellent job of communicating that many decisions that are made in the toys
have real and defendable basis for them. Even though at times, as a collector
we may not feel there is any reason for it. A perfect example was a question
about why the new Zutton had bending knees, while so many other figures do
not. The answer was that there wasn't need for special arm articulation on him,
while there was a need to let him sit on a chair in the cantina.

Recapping the big week we just had, Hasbro showed slides of their announcements
by news channel this week. Amidala Decoy on selected fan sites, FX-7 and
Zutton on Starwars.com and Rebel Fleet Trooper and Imperial Officer on their
site. What looked initially like last minute announcements, clearly were
designed to support this multiple channel release week.

The funniest thing that happened during the presentation was Audrey knocking
over a cup of water onto the notebook keyboard, Brian looking on in
horror, and Steve Sansweet coming to
her aid.

Eeth Koth
The venerated Jedi Master looks to be ready for battle, equiped with the
new style lightsaber - nicely textured for a more "energized" effect.
The figure has swiveling elbows and a joint in the right wrist for
serious lightsaber-weilding action.

Rebel Fleet Trooper Tantive IV Defender
Not too many figures in need of a resculpt quite as badly as the Rebel Fleet
Trooper. While many were glad to have any version of this trooper at all, the
original (neck-less) figure was pretty poor even by early POTF2 standards.
Comparing this new soldier, in all his articulated glory, with the old really
demonstrates just how far Hasbro has come in the sculpting and detail department. The
Fleet Trooper comes equipped with a painted two-tone pistol and sports knee joints that
allow for the familiar crouching position used to defend the hallways of the
Tantive IV in A New Hope. Details like bulging vest pockets and a snug
chin-strap add to an already impressive piece. Diorama builders are going to
love this guy!

Imperial Officer
Another diorama favorite - the jet-black Imperial Officer is troop-builder that
collectors have been waiting on for a long time now. The uniform, true to the
movie, is rather Spartan, though the details really shine where it counts.
Imperial insignia on the shoulder, silver belt buckle, high-gloss boots, and the
officer's cap all pull together to create a slick, rather sinister, package.
Best of all, the elbows swivel to allow for the hands to clasp behind his back
for a fantastic "standing at attention" pose. Ten hut!

Queen Amidala's Decoy
You certainly don't have to like gaudy gowns to appreciate the
wardrobe sculpt on the Queen's Decoy. You can practically count the feathers
on her! Splashes of color accent an otherwise drab (but accurate) paint job. The
powdered face is particularly effective given the muted pallet used on this
figure. Again the elbows swivel and allow for limited movement.

Zutton
Snaggletooth has never looked uglier. With a face only a mother could
love and an outfit straight out of Michael Jackson's closet, Zutton is
an alien no cantina is complete without. Perhaps most amazing is how
vinyl-like the bright red jacket appears - the creases and folds are
just amazing. Gold pin striping and glossy gloves round out one of the
great figure outfits to come from Hasbro in quite some time. Zutton also
continues the trend of having jointed knees and comes with a two-tone
pistol (not seen at the show, but recently shown in the picture over at
Star Wars.com) made for his ankle
holster. He'll also be packing an impressive bazooka-like weapon (for
occassions when the pistol just ain't cuttin' it). The astute will notice that his belt buckle
is the same design as the original vintage figure.

FX-7
The Doctor is "in". As you may have expected, this droid is going to
be the perfect addition to the Bacta Tank Luke playset. Sporting more robotic
arms than you'd care to count - all of which featured bending elbow and shoulder joints -
FX-7 has detailing to spare. Small knobs accented with bits of red and blue, the
dull blue plastic gives off just the right amount of reflection to give the
illusion of brushed metal. Notice too just how snugly the based of the medical droid
fits into the Bacta Tank pad - just like a glove (clearly designed for each other). Speaking of
the Bacta Tank, these photos also show the red tint that has been added to the tank glass, which is
quite a nice effect.

Moving into our nineteenth year of shooting Star Wars collectibles, we pause for a moment to consider legacy. Our photography is obviously recognizable because of the blue background, but looking further back, especially after we published The Man Who Shot Luke Skywalker galleries last December, we've put our minds to offering more classic Kenner backgrounds to our galleries. Follow this link to have a look and then let us know if you'd like to continue to explore this train of thought.

Focus on the Rebelscum legacy and keep it blue.

I love the nod to Kenner's history. I'd love to see Rebelscum embrace a more colourful vision.